This is the moment a gang of masked men armed with machetes barged in and threatened staff in a petrol station garage.
Two masked men wearing all black stormed the Texaco petrol station garage on Knowsley Lane at 7.50pm on Wednesday, November 2, and demanded the shop worker gave them electric cigarettes. They then pulled a machete out and began pointing it at the shop working while threatening them.
CCTV footage of the incident shows both of the masked men waving the huge blades while holding open a backpack. They then run out of the shop empty-handed after being scared away by the petrified shop worker, who was holding a crowbar behind the counter.
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The next night (Thursday, November 3), garage owner Huzi Patel, 29, was working in the shop after giving his staff member the night off to recover from the previous night's incident. At 8.46pm while Mr Patel was serving another customer, he spotted a gang of six people lingering on the forecourt.
He told The ECHO : "When I saw them outside that's when I shouted at them 'what are you doing?'. When I realised there was six of them that's when I stepped back, I knew if I didn't it would have been me that was getting hurt because I was outnumbered.
"They came back for revenge after they left empty handed that night before."
CCTV footage seen by t he ECHO shows two members of the masked gang enter the garage as more gather around the door. One of them pulls a machete on the customer inside the store and she's able to escape.
Another gang member is then seen smashing the stock in front of the till with a bat before they all run out of the shop.
Mr Patel said: "They didn't steal anything from me, it's more the damage than anything else - but it's something I'm just going to have to deal with, at least nobody was hurt. They [the gang] just need to be caught before somebody is hurt or killed."
The 29-year-old called the police straight after both incidents and CCTV and witness enquiries are being carried out.
Detective Inspector James Rotheram said: “Thankfully the staff member was not injured during the incident, but it is appalling to think a man just doing his job is subjected to such threats. We will not tolerate this and will do all we can to find those responsible.
“No-one should be subjected to this level of fear and intimidation while they try to earn an honest living, so please come forward and we will do everything in our power to find those responsible.
“We are at the early stages of our investigation and we want to hear from anyone who has any information. If you were driving in the Knowsley Lane area at around 9pm on 3rd November and have dashcam footage then please review it and let us know if you see anything suspicious. Please also check footage from previous evenings to see if you see anything that could help our investigation.
“Whether you come forward to us directly or anonymously via Crimestoppers, all information will be acted upon.”
If you have any information, please message ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’ on Facebook with reference 22000808996.
You can also contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information.
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